SI.com - NCAA Football - BGSU hands No. 12 NIU its first loss - Saturday October 25, 2003 7:34PM

SI.com - NCAA Football - BGSU hands No. 12 NIU its first loss - Saturday October 25, 2003 7:34PM Ok, this has nothing to do with information literacy or library instruction. (At least not directly anyway. I am sure I could make a lesson plan based on this game...) But, as a graduate of BGSU, and a native of Wood County Ohio, I am thrilled by Bowling Green's football win over #12 Northern Illinois. Go Falcons! I hope BGSU wins the MAC and gets a bowl game.

From CNN, "BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (AP) -- Josh Harris threw for 438 yards and three touchdowns as No. 23 Bowling Green handed 12th-ranked Northern Illinois its first loss of the season, 34-18 on Saturday.

Harris was nearly unstoppable, breaking his career high for passing yards in what might have been the biggest Mid-American Conference ever. Only once before -- in 1973 -- had two MAC teams ranked in the Top 25 met in the regular season.

The Huskies (7-1, 3-1 MAC) were just one of four unbeaten teams in major college football coming into the week and were 10th in the first BCS standings."

Directory of Online Resources for Information Literacy (DORIL)

Directory of Online Resources for Information Literacy (DORIL) Although this site is a little dated in spots, this is an excellent place to look for good online resources relating to information literacy. DORIL recently changed hands and Mark Dibble at the University of South Florida is now managing the directory. It is organized into 12 sections:

- Assessment
- Bibliographies and Webographies
- Conferences
- Definitions
- Electronic Mailing Lists
- Information Literacy Plans
- The Information Literacy Process
- Organizations and Projects
- Papers and Presentations
- Programs in Higher Education
- Programs in K-12 Education
- Tutorials

I am sure if you visit the site you will find something interesting and worthwhile.

Designs for Active Learning

Designs for Active Learning: I recently looked this book over and liked it a lot. If you use (or our thinking of using active learning in your classroom) this book would be worth buying.

Here is an Amazon review of the book: "This practical book for instruction librarians provides 54 active learning exercises useful for planning library instruction ranging from one or more classroom instruction sessions to full-semester library credit courses. Coverage includes exercises on basic library skills, online searching, resource evaluation, and discipline-oriented library instruction, all provided by practitioners in college and university libraries. Each exercise includes an introductory description, level of activity (e.g., basic, intermediate, advanced), time required, size of class, preparation needed, class instructions, and discussion, with appropriate handouts. A 3.5" disk (using Microsoft Word 6.0) accompanying the book contains the handouts, forms and teaching aids illustrated in the book, so that the exercises are readily adapted for local use. The book includes an introductory essay on active learning in library instruction and a list of selected readings. The style is clear and easy to follow, providing instruction librarians with usable examples of how to incorporate active learning techniques to improve library instruction."

Using Outcome-Based Education in the Planning and Teaching of New Information Technologies

Using Outcome-Based Education in the Planning and Teaching of New Information Technologies. Regardless of the lesson plan you use, if students can't conduct library research when you are done teaching them, you wasted your time. The same goes for information literacy. An informationally literate student who can't actually use a library resource is going to have problems. That is why library instruction needs to address the need at hand. What does the student need to know to do this assignment? All the glitz and information literacy instruction can be heaped on after your done with that important task.

One method of teaching which uses a successful outcome as a baseline for instruction is outcome-based education. Today's linked site related OBE to library instruction. It starts, "A considerable amount of work needs to be done when selecting new information technologies. From deciding which technology to use to dealing with the vendor's license agreement, a great deal of effort is expanded by library administrators. However, two important and crucial areas that are often overlooked are considering what outcomes a library wants from a new information technology and planning to introduce and teach library patrons how to use the new information resource. It is pointless to purchase an information technology unless it is used effectively by the patrons of a library. A variety of approaches can be taken when designing the curriculum of a library instruction program. Most of these approaches can be traced back to current pedagogical practices that are being advocated by the education profession. One current educational approach which has not received a lot of attention by librarians is outcome-based education (OBE). This approach is highly relevant to libraries planning on introducing new information technologies to patrons as it ties in closely to the goals of library instruction, and to a lesser degree, reference services." Full article at http://www.libraryinstruction.com/obe.html.

Extending School-to-College Programs to the Community College

Extending School-to-College Programs to the Community College The transition to college from high school is a difficult one for many students. Most 4 year schools have programs which help students with this stessful time. Librarians have long recognized this critical first year as well. Some of the most effective library instruction we do is in the first year.

These programs are especially helpful for students we know to be historically at-risk. Today's blogged site looks at how this sort of program can be extended to community colleges. The article begins:

"Each year, many special high school-to-college programs help youth attend college. Typically these programs target 'at risk' students- the underprivileged, minorities, or the academically challenged. Some programs are funded by private sources; others use public funds.

Educators from more than 180 countries attending a U.N. meeting affirmed that more people need postsecondary education to be sufficiently skilled (Murray, 1999). Peter Drucker (1995) agreed when he said, “knowledge has become the key resource for a nation’s military and economic strength” (p. 37). School-to-college programs acknowledge the need for postsecondary training and provide increasing access to college as the way of extending opportunity for all (Tierney & Hagedorn, 2002).

Although there is almost universal agreement on the need for postsecondary education, access to and success in college are not widespread and remain highly correlated with race, socioeconomic status, and other demographic statistics unrelated to student effort, goals, or true ability. America’s schools face difficulties in serving increasingly diverse groups of students. According to the latest census, 40% of those under the age of 18 are African American, Asian American, Hispanic, American Indian, or another “minority” (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000). Despite years of federal aid and promising strategies, students enrolled in the country’s low-income schools continue to lag behind in most measures of academic success (Levine, 1996)." Full article at http://rapidintellect.com/AEQweb/mo2402j3.htm.

Caldecott Award

Caldecott Award. As an academic librarian, I don't have a lot of training or experience with children's books. However, as a father of two sons, I am learning. My favorite books is Where the Wild Things Are. I just can't resist that part the goes, "We'll eat you up we love you so." I reach down and kiss my boys each time I get to that part. The blogged site of the day has some ideas on how to teach students about Caldecott Award winning books.

Some listed ideas:

1. Hold a Caldecott Award party. Have the children read winning books by themselves and with each other. Have the teacher or librarian read a favorite winner or two. Decorate the library or classroom to fit a theme. Imagine a "Where the Wild Things Are" theme!

2. Have a Caldecott Award alcove in your library or classroom. Have all the past winning books on the shelve. Explain to students, parents, and patrons why these books are important. Encourage that they be checked out and read.

3. Assign each student in a class or reading group one of the Caldecott Award books. Make sure each child has a different book. Have them report back to the class or group about the book the student read at a latter date.

4. Have a costume day based on one of the Caldecott Award books. Again, "Where the Wild Things Are" would be great for this theme. However, other books that have won the award would work good as well.

Full article at: http://www.libraryreference.com/caldecott.html.